Volkswagen Golf R20T

Volkswagen first hinted at a new high-performance version of the Scirocco coupe when it revealed the GT24 race concept back at the Austrian Wörthersee Tour tuning show in May, but in what form the car will finally come to production is still up in the air. A report from AutoExpress suggests that the Volkswagen brand has finally succumbed to pressures by canning the 3.2-litre naturally aspirated V6 in favour of its trusted 2.0-litre turbo. This move applies to the range-topping Golf which is not the GTI but the R32. What's more is that the name R32 will disappear along with the engine to which it referred. Instead the car will likely be called the R20T and its chief rivals will be the Ford Focus RS, VW Group cousin the Audi S3 and the Subaru Impreza STI.

According to CAR, the new R20T will go on sale in Europe in early 2010 and will closely match the styling of the GT24 race concept. Key features likely lifted from the concept include the aggressively styled bumper with larger intakes and unique fog lights, as well as the slightly wider fenders and lower ride height.

By tweaking the 2.0-litre's ECU about 270bhp (201kW) can be extracted, which is similar to the Audi S3's power output of 265bhp from the same engine. A high-performance Scirocco R20T is also expected to use the same engine. The car will not only have more power than the current V6's 250bhp (186kW) but also weigh less as a result of the smaller engine. Thus improved performance overall and fewer C02 emissions can be expected. Whether a 4WD system or FWD will be used remains to be seen. However two gearboxes will be mated to whichever system is chosen, these being the 6-speed manual and DSG.

Styling is likely to be similar to that of the GTI and include LED daytime running lights, a sportier front bumper, flared wheel arches, and an underbody diffuser. The twin pipes located at the rear bumper centre remain in place but because the V6 is no more a similar sound will be engineered.